


A Foolhardy Man

by sayanoraSanity



Category: Red Dead Redemption (Video Games)
Genre: Bad Weather, First Kiss, Hair Braiding, Im still sad, M/M, No Spoilers, Not Beta Read, Sharing Body Heat, Sharing a Bed, Warm and Fuzzy Feelings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-21
Updated: 2019-02-21
Packaged: 2019-11-01 16:55:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,771
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17871107
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sayanoraSanity/pseuds/sayanoraSanity
Summary: Arthur Morgan is caught in the rain and ends up camping out in an abandoned cabin. He's caught alone with his friend Charles Smith, the only person he feels understands him.Takes place during Chapter Three I guess.





	A Foolhardy Man

Arthur took a long drag from a cigarette, the smoke filling his lungs. Arthur used to smoke everyday, probably twice a day. But now the smoke burned differently in his lungs, it felt like someone lit his lungs on fire and he couldn’t breathe. Arthur figured the smoke was finally wearing him down, he was getting old. With that thought he coughed violently and threw his cigarette into the mud. He called for Hamilton who was getting restless, and mounted the big brute. He unrolled the map Hosea gave him of big animals and set his sights on the moose. He hadn’t hunted a moose in a long time, John once joked that Arthur was stupider than a moose. And that was saying something. Those big bastards would destroy first, ask never. Arthur wasn’t much better, he was definitely a fool with destructive tendencies. Most times he’d go in guns blazing with little thought for a plan but old Dutch loved plans. Arthur had a plan this time, shoot the big guy until he died. And he did, the moose was gigantic. It took ten minutes to properly skin him without butchering the fur. 

The moose was actually near an old cabin Arthur had been meaning to scope out but as he threw the big moose pelt on Hamilton’s back he felt quite tired. It was starting to rain, the first few drops landing on Arthur’s hat. He decided to come back for the cabin and started making his way towards Annesburg. Upon arrival he found out there was in fact no hotel in this shitty little town. The rain was coming down in buckets, soaking through Arthur’s jacket and shirt. With a heavy sigh he got back onto Hamilton, who seemed just as discontent as Arthur. He’d catch his death if he stayed out in the rain, so he started towards an old cabin he stumbled upon a few weeks back. Weeks… it had been weeks since Arthur had been back to camp. He hoped they weren’t missing him too much but seeing as they had the golden boy, he doubted anyone was missing him. His mood was as somber as the weather as he hitched Hamilton up to the side of the house with some cover. He took the pelt off of the horse and stored it inside. Arthur took a dry shirt off Hamilton too but at this point it wasn’t that dry. The old cabin had some broken furniture, whatever valuables were here had been taken by ransackers a long time ago. There was an empty fireplace, two chairs that were still intact and a bed shoved into the corner. He hung his jacket up on the mantle and started a weak fire. He changed his shirt and sat down on the bed. He let out a heavy sigh and a small cough. 

Arthur started sketching what he remembered the proud moose like alive, such an odd yet majestic creature. He was lucky he was the one who hunted the beast down. The trapper would make a nice coat of the pelt, and the horns would sell for a nice price. His pencil flew out of his hand when he heard a knocking on the door. He jumped up, pulling the trigger back on his pistol as he approached the door slowly. “Arthur? Are you in there?” Charles’ familiar voice called. Arthur lowered his pistol and swung the door open. The man was completely drenched, his long hair sticking to his face. “Charles? What the hell are you doing out here? How’d you find me?” Arthur ushered the man inside, closing the door behind him. “You hadn’t been at camp for a few weeks so I asked Dutch if I could look for you. Many people remembered you, you apparently made quite an impression.” Charles said as he took off his jacket, his shirt was also wet. The man looked like he’d been swimming. “I also recognized your horse. What’d you name him again?” Charles asked as he also shed his shirt. Arthur felt his face flush, he was flattered Charles was worried about him. “Hamilton,” Charles looked at him expectantly. “Hosea told me when I was a kid, he was one of the founding fathers. Not as well known.” Arthur explained. “I appreciate you bein’ worried but you look like a drowned bear Charles. You shouldn’ta come all this way.” Arthur looked apologetically at the other man. “It doesn’t matter much now. I’m here and you don’t look much better Arthur.” Charles pointed out as he put on a dry undershirt. Arthur felt his face cool down once Charles put the shirt on. He looked down at his boots and chuckled. “Yeah, I been feelin’ rough lately. The rain don’t help much.” he sat down on one of the chairs, Charles hung his coat up on the mantle as well. A comfortable silence fell between them as Charles sat down as well. Arthur offered him some roasted elk which he accepted. “So, anyone else worried?” Arthur asked, crossing his arms. Charles glanced to the side before looking back at Arthur. “I’m certain they noticed but no one said anything. It wouldn’t be the first time you disappeared for weeks on end.” Charles sounded a bit bitter at the end but his face didn’t betray any emotion. Arthur felt shame wash over him, he nodded slowly. “Yeah, sorry ‘bout that. When you get older time starts to feel faster.” Arthur sighed. “You’re not that much older than me.” Charles reminded him, the bitterness alleviated. “Maybe not.” the two then fell into another span of silence. Charles started to braid his hair but it kept falling out. “I got you.” Arthur muttered as he stood up and moved behind the man. He hummed his appreciation as Arthur worked his fingers through Charles’ hair. Arthur had learned how to braid over the years, his mother liked to have her hair braided. So did Eliza, she taught him how to do a few other hairstyles. He didn’t braid much until Mary Beth came along, who never stopped pestering Arthur once she found out he could braid. That girl was going to be the death of him, she seemed like a kid but Arthur knew better. He ran his fingers through Charles coarse hair, gently untangling any knots before starting to braid it. His hair was slightly damp still but mostly dry by this point. “I didn’t know you could braid.” Charles commented absent-mindedly, leaning into Arthur’s hands. Arthur blushed. “My mama taught me but I picked it up a couple more places. When we was little, I would sit on John and braid his hair when I got mad at him. Usually I just ended up tying his hair in a knot and Miss Grimshaw had to undo it.” Arthur chuckled fondly at the memory, Charles smiled. “Did you always get into fights with John?” a beat passed. “I guess. He was a stupid kid but so was I. Only difference between us was that Dutch liked him better, boy did I hate him for that as a kid. Hosea was good to me though.” Arthur finished braiding Charles hair. Charles thanked him by handing him a bottle of whiskey. Arthur took a swig of the whiskey, it burned in the back of his throat. He passed the bottle back to Charles. They talked a little but a silence fell over the two, the sun outside had long since disappeared. Arthur yawned and stood up, going for his bedroll. He realized with dread he’d left his bedroll on Hamilton. Which meant it was drenched. He looked back at Charles who was rummaging through his stuff looking for his bedroll. “Ah… it seems I didn’t bring my bedroll. I didn’t expect to be gone for so long.” Charles looked at Arthur who scratched his nape. “Pretty sure mine is drenched right now… I’ll take the floor and you can have the bed.” Arthur gestured to the blanketless cot. “Nonsense. It can fit two people. We don’t have any blankets anyways.” Charles took the side closer to the wall, gesturing for Arthur to lay down. Arthur used his arm as a pillow, Charles was facing away from him. He tried to settle down and close his eyes but he felt so acutely aware of how close he was to Charles. That and he was freezing. He could hear Charles softly breathing, he could smell him. He smelled like tobacco and oak, it was surprisingly comforting. Arthur had finally closed his eyes when he felt Charles shiver. Charles wasn’t asleep yet either.

Arthur scooted closer to Charles and tentatively wrapped an arm around his waist. Charles seemed to melt into his touch, eager for some warmth. Arthur took this as acceptance and moved closer. “I’m glad you’re here.” Arthur whispered, Charles then turned over to look Arthur in the eyes. “So am I.” Charles whispered back. Arthur’s heart was racing, he was pretty sure Charles could hear it. Arthur froze when Charles cupped his cheek, his eyes scanning every detail of Arthur’s face. It was a very intimate action, but Arthur didn’t pull away. He let Charles lean in and kiss him, even if he was a bit of a stumbling fool. Charles kissed him breathless and pulled away when they both needed air. Charles smiled softly and closed his eyes. The two settled into a sleeping position comfortable for both of them. Arthur could sleep about anywhere but he discovered Charles was a bit restless, he took a while to settle down. Arthur had seen the man awake but scarcely asleep. He was less hesitant about wrapping his arms around Charles waist this time, even if he wasn’t sure what they were now. There was probably no polite term for it anyways.

 

Arthur woke when the light from the window started hitting his eyes. Charles was awake but had remained in his arms, keeping them both warm. Arthur could see the rain had all but disappeared and the sky was clear. Charles looked at him tenderly, he looked enchanting in this light. Arthur wished he had his camera so he could capture Charles’ beauty. “What?” Charles asked quietly, a smile forming on his lips. “Nothin’ you’re just… beautiful.” Arthur wasn’t sure Charles would like being called beautiful, most men would punch him for saying it but Charles just softly laughed. “Maybe we don’t need to go back to camp just yet.” Charles said, brushing his loose hairs out of his eyes. Arthur nodded and laid there for god knows how much longer. 

 

**Author's Note:**

> Hopefully you didn't hate it? Please let me know if you find any mistakes or think they're OOC. I love this ship and game so I'll probably write more for them. Let me know what kind of fix you would like to read. Thank you.


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